too early," the show that's proudly ranked just ahead of doctors at our penmanship class. we have a lot to talk about, including a white house meeting on gun control between vice president biden and leaders of the national rifle association. i'll tell you why the nra leaders walked away disappointed. plus, the pentagon tightens its belts ahead of possible cuts. first, our top story at 5:30 a.m. here at 30 rock in new york city. amid a national debate about guns and violence, a california teacher and a campus supervisor are being credited for heroic actions yesterday during yet another school shooting. it happened in taft, california, around the same time vice president joe biden was holding meetings in washington about possible gun regulation. police say a 16-year-old gunman who felt he was being bullied specifically targeted two students using 12-gauge shotguns. one of them was shot and remains in critical but stable condition. the second student was not hit. police say the teacher in the

classroom who was grazed by a shotgun pellet and a campus supervisor managed to engage the gunman in conversation and convince him to drop his weapon. police say the shotgun belonged to the suspect's brother. taft high school where the shooting took place typically has an armed guard on campus. the sheriff's department said the guard wasn't there yesterday because he is, well, he was snowed in. no replacementcemenreplacement,. meanwhile, the white house task force is set to deliver a list of proposals to the president by tuesday. vice president joe biden who has been meeting this week with groups from different sides of the debate offered a glimpse of what might be in store. >> there's a surprising, so far, a surprising recurrence of suggestions we have universal background checks. not just close the gun show loophole but total universal background checks, including private sales.

there's also a good deal of talk about gun safety and what responsibility goes along with gun ownership. i've never quite heard as much talk about the need to do something about high capacity magazines as i've heard spontaneously from every group that we've met with so far. there is nothing that has pricked the consciousness of the american people. there's nothing that's gone to the heart of the matter more than the visual image people have of 6-year-old kids riddled, not shot with a stray bullet, riddled with bullet holes in their classroom. i think we can do a great deal without imposing on the rights of the second amendment. >> biden met yesterday with

representatives of the national rifle association, which has added 100,000 new members since the shooting in newtown, connecticut. from the gun lobbyists' perspective, the meeting did little to bridge differences on the issue. >> it wasn't so much an open-ended -- it was a polite but not a real conversation. it was two sides stating their positions and then leaving. so the administration was able to check the box and say they talked to the representatives of firearms owners and the groups that support the second amendment and now they were going to try to proceed with what they wanted to do. >> in addition to the policy arguments, there are also political implications at play. an adviser for bush 43 and the mccain campaign says the gun issue is damaging the republican party. he writes, quote, as a republican, i think it's yet another instance where the party by refusing to recognize reality is going to end up looking like the stupid party that fails to adapt and evolve to changing circumstances in our society on issues where the physics are

moving irrevocably forward like immigration, gay rights and guns. the republican party continues to look backward, a sure path toward irrelevancy. well, the republican party is looking for ways to improve its standing with hispanics ahead of the 2014 political cycle. today, jeb bush is scheduled to meet with a group of prominent republicans in miami to discuss the importance of connecting with the values and concerns of hispanic voters. president obama won 71% of the hispanic vote over mitt romney this past election. in 2008, obama took 67% to mccain's 31%. well, the pentagon is preparing for a worst case scenario in which lawmakers fail to retain march 1st deadline on a budget deal that would result in deep across the board budget cuts, including 500 million less for the pentagon. defense secretary leon panetta has ordered a series of cutback measures, including a freeze on civilian hiring and a delay on contract awards. he also warned budget cuts would

be a huge setback for national security. >> regardless of what congress does or fails to do, we still have an obligation to protect this country. the simple fact is that this fiscal uncertainty has become a very serious threat to our national security. and like any grave threat that we face, the american people expect and deserve action. >> panetta, who is stepping down as defense secretary, said the budget cuts may require furloughs for nearly 800,000 civilian employees in the department. well, today president obama is scheduled to meet with afghan president hamid karzai at the white house. the two men are expected to focus on what role the u.s. will have in afghanistan after its troop withdrawal in 2014. last night the afghan president sat down for dinner with secretary of state hillary clinton and secretary panetta. earlier, panetta spoke optimistically about the u.s.

entering its final chapter of the war. >> we have poured a lot of blood and treasure in this war over the last ten years. the fact is that we have also made a lot of progress as a result of the sacrifices that have been made. and we're not going to walk backward from what's been accomplished. >> the stronger position we take in showing that we are going to continue to complete this mission, the better the chances we have to ultimately achieve political reconciliation. >> during a photo op with senate minority leader mitch mcconnell yesterday, president karzai declined to answer about troops in his country after 2014. >> what kind of forces would you like to see left in your country are i? >> thank you, everybody. >> come on. >> i was told by the organizer of the senate to keep quiet. [ laughter ] >> thank you, everybody.

>> well, president obama and president karzai will participate in a joint news conference this afternoon. president obama is now on his lookout for his next chief of staff after nominating jack lew to replace timothy geithner at the treasury department. the president called the move bittersweet but insisted his loss will be the nation's gain. >> over the years, he's built a reputation as a master of policy who can work with members of both parties and forge principaled coprincipal -- principled compromises. jack has my trust. i know i'm not alone in that. i hope the senate will confirm him as quickly as possible. >> during yesterday's announcement, both lew and president obama poked fun at the media attention surrounding his loopy signature. >> you've been a friend and colleague for many years. actually, decades. the american people are better

off for your outstanding service. and you know, i thought i knew you pretty well, but it was only yesterday that i discovered we both share a common challenge with penmanship. >> i had never noticed jack's signature. when this was highlighted yesterday in the press, i considered rescinding my offer to appoint him. jack assures me that he is going to work to make at least one letter legible in order not to debase our currency should he be confirmed as secretary of the treasury. >> well, the president's deputy of national security adviser and the one-time chief of staff to biden and gore are considered to be the leading candidates to replace lew at the white house. as always, let us know why you're awake. or send us a picture of your john hancock, good or bad. we'll analyze at the end of the show. you can send those to

waytooearly@msnbc.com or to my twitter account. still ahead, the refs have been the story this college basketball season. another controversy last night at the end of the vanderbi vanderbilt/kentucky game. plus, you would think a man singing at the top of his lungs would draw a glance from his fellow subway passengers. not in my city. that story and a check on the weather when "way too early" comes right back. >> we've been together eight years now. soon it'll be time for me to go. so good-bye, god bless you, and god bless the united states of america. so you say men are superior drivers?

yeah. then how'd i get this... [ voice of dennis ] ...safe driving bonus check? every six months without an accident, allstate sends a check. ok. [ voice of dennis ] silence. are you in good hands?

[ bop ] [ bop ] [ bop ] you can do that all you want, i don't like v8 juice. [ male announcer ] how about v8 v-fusion. a full serving of vegetables, a full serving of fruit. but what you taste is the fruit. so even you... could've had a v8.

are you ready for some heat this weekend, d.c.? i mean, 50s is heat. let's get a check on your weekend forecast from meteorologist dylan dreyer. yesterday, louisiana was a little nasty. where is all that heading today? >> it's all about indiana today. indiana, ohio. that's the whole region that's going to pick up just as much rain as we saw in louisiana yesterday. why is this happening? well, this is a very, very slow-moving system, so it sat right over louisiana yesterday. today it's sitting right through indiana and is moving into ohio. we have pockets of heavy rain. we have thunderstorms right now down across western kentucky, but it's not the severe weather we had yesterday across louisiana. there are no tornado watches or anything like we saw down in the south yesterday. in the northeast, though, some clouds will try to work in. we will see a couple of showers in the northeast late today, but it's not going to be the heavy stuff that fell to our west. it is going to be real light in nature. just a few nuisance showers

later today. the good news is that's the leading edge of warm air. look at our temperatures. it's cold right now, but we will see highs today top out in the 40s. again, that is a little bit above average for this time of year. then tomorrow it gets even better. we'll go, i'd call it, moderately above average into saturday with temperatures in boston about 47 degrees. we should top out in the mid-50s from new york city right down into philadelphia and washington, d.c. tomorrow. 62 degrees. warmer in d.c.? well, here is that warmup we're talking about. down in the nation's capital, about 49 degrees today with some of those showers starting to work in. we'll add ten degrees to that for saturday, topping out in the upper 50s. we'll make it warmer for sunday, 68 degrees. the best thing is it's not just a quick, one day event. it's going to last into the start of next week. temperatures monday should also be in the 60s. we're looking at about 15 to 20 degrees above average, which the opposite is happening in chicago. by sunday, temperatures will drop down into the 20s. so this is a really nice warmup. personally, this is my kind of

stuff. i like the warm air. >> yeah, but the ski resort owners and snowmobilers are cursing you. we're talking almost cherry blossom weather. >> you hope it doesn't mess anything up. >> trees get confused. tulips come up. middle of january. thanks, dylan. to sports now. the nfl playoffs continue tomorrow. only eight teams remain in the hunt for the lombardi trophy. tomorrow, paiston manning and the broncos hosting the ravens in the early game followed by aaron rodgers leading the packers into san francisco. probably the best offense versus the best defense in the nfl. on sunday, it'll be rookie russell wilson and the seahawks traveling to atlanta to face the number one nfc seeded falcons who no one is afraid of. while the late game will have the texans trying to do the impossible, take down tom brady and the patriots in foxborough. details have been released

on junior seau's death. after examining his brain, the national institutes of health concluded seau suffered from degenerative brain disease cte when he fatally shot himself. cte is caused by mild, repetitive trauma to the brain. it's been associated with the symptoms ranging from mood swings to insomnia, depression, and even dementia. autopsies revealed similar brain damage to two former nfl players who committed suicide. the nfl is currently facing a lawsuit from more than 2,000 former placer who withheld information about head traumas. the heat taking on the trail blazer in portland. dwyane wade goes long. wasn't exactly a signature dunk by lebron, but we'll take it. that's heat up by 12. blazers come all the way back. matthews, the three. that puts them up by one. the final seconds, is it wade? is it going to be lebron?

no, chalmers with the final shot. almost made it. not exactly probably how they drew it up. the blazers win 92-90, snapping lebron's streak of 54 straight games with at least 20 points. it appears the heat may have caught something from the lakers. the heat have lost five of their last eight. on the college court now. van bderbilt taking on kentucky. the vanderbilt coach thinks it's a shot clock violation. you be the judge. there's the ball. shot clock, it was way expired. you can see it over there on the bottom right where it goes to zero. i don't know why the back board didn't light up. i guess maybe they don't do that there. the play wasn't even reviewed. it ended up costing vanderbilt a chance to tie the game with a three on the next possession. kentucky goes on to win 60-58. more college basketball. oregon hosting arizona last night.

the first half, the ducks go up by nine. the dunk by e.j. woods. that was the largest lead of the game for oregon. mark lyon hits the three with a man in his face. that pulls arizona within four. final seconds, wildcats down by four hoping for the miracle. maybe the bucket and the foul. not going to happen. oregon hangs on to get arizona their first loss of the year, 70-66. the ducks get a huge upset win over their pac 12 rivals. the only left undefeated teams in college basketball, duke and michigan. well, coming up at the top of the hour, the nra says the group's invitation to the white house yesterday was basically just for show, suggesting administration officials have already made up their minds when it comes to gun reform. the "morning joe" crew will break down what comes next in the debate over violence in america. and when we come back here, we'll huddle around the water cooler where jack lew's signature gets the late night treatment. stay tuned.

officemax can help you drive supply costs... down... ...and down. just use your maxperks card and get a case of x-9 paper for only 1-cent after maxperks rewards. find thousands of big deals now... ...at officemax. i've always kept my eye on her... but with so much health care noise, i didn't always watch out for myself. with unitedhealthcare, i get personalized information and rewards for addressing my health risks. but she's still going to give me a heart attack. that's health in numbers. unitedhealthcare. i just served my mother-in-law your chicken noodle soup but she loved it so much... i told her it was homemade. everyone tells a little white lie now and then. but now she wants my recipe

[ clears his throat ] [ softly ] she's right behind me isn't she? [ male announcer ] progresso. you gotta taste this soup.

that was nice. fluff it. fluff it first. then straighten the jacket. >> okay. good, good. all right. >> well, enough with the real news. let's gather around the water cooler with lewis. lewis, what do we have today? >> well, you see this beyonce on the governor of "" "gq"? she gave birth to her baby girl a year ago. now she's headlining the super bowl in february. her fifth solo album is expected to come out later this year. she's incredible. jay-z, her, i'm a huge fan of both of them. >> it's probably dna and she works hard. she probably works her tail off. >> she works very hard. incredible woman. now we told you earlier in the show about president obama nominating chief of staff jack lew to head the treasury department. everyone, including president

obama himself, are poking fun at lew's penmanship. here's john stewart's take. >> president obama will nominate his chief of staff over at the white house jack lew to be the next treasury secretary. >> it's going to be his signature on the bottom of our currency. it will look something like this. >> that -- that's your signature? or are you just testing to see if the pen works? hey, lew, here's a tip. stop signing all your checks on the teacup ride at disney world. the only way that you're allowed to have that as your signature is if your name is boing. >> i bet you're wondering what our names would look like in that classic jack lew penmanship. >> if he was writing it. >> yahoo! news has an app for that. >> of course they do. >> check it out.

the official jack lew signature generator. if you type your name, you can generate your own jack lew. wow. >> what's mine look like? that's a fascinating "b" at the start. >> i like that. mine is going to be much more elegant. >> that's not bad, actually. at least everything is on the same line. >> that's a good one. >> as treasury of secretary, jack lew's signature will be on every official u.s. dollar. so why don't we see what it will look like? i take a little crack at it here. >> let's see what yours would look like. your scribbles are not good. >> king of the world. >> can anyone out there read that? what is that? >> this thing doesn't work. >> you don't even fit in the lines. >> this thing is garbage. let's move on. oh, he's throwing paper balls over here. >> spring training is only about a month away. he gets a little excited. >> can't take that guy anywhere. all right. now, it's just another day in

new york city. this is my final story. a manhattan subway rider uploaded a video to youtube chronicling here subway ride. this is typical. ♪ ♪ i don't want to die wish i'd never been born at all ♪ >> that's not -- >> no reaction from the fellow passengers. >> that's not bad. the funny thing about it -- >> nothing? >> gallileo. >> i don't have that -- >> neither do i. that's the whole point. >> the woman next to him is just

reading her e-mails. that's typical new york. regular day. >> we have the song playing in the background to help us out. >> take us out here. >> good cooler, buddy. still ahead, why are you awake? remember i asked i wanted to see what your john hancock looked like, good or bad? we're going to do that moments away. [ male announcer ] rocky had no idea why dawn was gone for so long... ...but he'd wait for her forever, for any reason, and would always be there with the biggest welcome home. for a love this strong, dawn only feeds him iams. compared to other leading brands, it has 50% more animal protein. ...to help keep rocky's body as strong as a love that never fades... if he ever lets her leave again. iams. keep love strong. ♪ i have direct deposit on my visa prepaid. my paycheck is loaded right on my card. automatic.

i am not going downtown standing in line to cash it. i know where my money is, because it is in my pocket. i got more time with my daughter, we got places to go. [ freeman ] go open a new world, with visa prepaid. more people go with visa. has oats that can help lower cholesterol? and it tastes good? sure does! wow. it's the honey, it makes it taste so... well, would you look at the time... what's the rush? be happy. be healthy. but, dad, you've got... [ voice of dennis ] allstate. with accident forgiveness, they guarantee your rates won't go up just because of an accident. smart kid. [ voice of dennis ] indeed. are you in good hands? [ male announcer ] how do you make 70,000 trades a second... ♪ reach one customer at a time? ♪

or help doctors turn billions of bytes of shared information... ♪ into a fifth anniversary of remission? ♪ whatever your business challenge, dell has the technology and services to help you solve it. ♪ ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] some day, your life will flash before your eyes. ♪ make it worth watching. ♪ the new 2013 lexus ls. an entirely new pursuit.

well, at the top of the show we asked you to send in your signatures, if you dared. any winners? >> yeah, we got a few. let's see if you can guess their names. i think they're pretty clear. >> that's not bad. we have kathy. looked like she was taught penmanship by nuns in the 50s. okay job. what's next? yeah, mr. z. or is that g? one more. anyone can recognize this one? >> mike barnacle. >> you know, he's supposed to live under the bridge in central park and he has that neat of a signature? totally ruins the image. the last one i wanted to do, everyone wanted to know what pretty boy donny's signature looked like. boom.